Rotary engine.



PATENTED FEB. I7, 1905.

R. LEB.

ROTARY ENGINE. APPLIOATNN FILED AUG. 2z. 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Fig. I.

PATENTED FEB. '7, 1905.

R. LEE.

ROTARY ENGINE.

APPLIOATION FILED AUG. 22. 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

HHH

NTT'ED STATES Patented February '7, 1905.

RICHARD L EE, OF GREAT BOOKHAM, ENGLAND.

ROTARY ENGINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 782,037, dated February '7, 1905.

application tei August 22, 1904. Serial No. 221,709.

.Be it known that 1, RICHARD LEE, a subject of the Kingof Great Britain, residing' at Great Bookliani,Englarid, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rotary Engines, Blowers, and Pumps, of which the following' is a specification.

My invention relates to reversible rotary engines, blowers, and pumps of the annular or crescent-shaped chamber type with rotary piston-drum having' two or more vanes hinged or pivoted thereto and a fixed abutment whose workingl surface is continuous with that of the working' chamber. According to my invention l construct each of the hinged or pivoted vanes or pistons with a stop at that end of the vane remote from the axis thereof and adjacent to the inner surface of the vane, said stop being arranged to coact with a Corresponding' stop formed on the wall of the piston-recess in the rotary piston-drum. These stops conjointly in addition to limiting the outward travel of the vanes or pistons for the purpose of reducing' the friction between the latter and the wall of the working' chamber also form fluid-tight joints between the vanes and the rotary piston-drum. l also construct each vane or piston with a cylindrical inner surface which slides or travels over fixed cams and either with a sharp exterior' edge in contact with the face of the working chamber or with a rounded exterior edge in contact with said chamber. lVlien the exterior edge of the vane is sharp, the line of contact of said edge with the face of the working chamber is the axis of the cylindrical inner surface of the vane; butwhen the exterior cdg'e is rounded then the axis of the said cylindrical inner surface is also the axis of the said rounded edge. The operative surfaces of the fixed cams are so shaped that all lines drawn from these said surfaces normal thereto and extended to the faces of the working chamber and abutment are of' equal length. The shape of the cams insures the accurate guiding' of the vanes until the latter come in contact with the stops above referred to and with the face of the working chamber, in which position that vane which is operative receives the full pressure of the working fluid.

. of a tube carried in suitable bearings.

My said invention further comprises improved abutment-packing arranged between the inlet and exhaust ports and extending the full width of the working chamber. In some cases I provide one packing-piece and in others two, each packing-piece being a segment The said packing pieces automatically adjust themselves, as hereinafter described, to insure a fluid-tight lioint and to compensate Vfor wear, also to minimize friction.

My said invention also comprises an improved form of tappet-motion for controlling the admission of the working agent to the working chamber.

ln the accompanying drawings, Fig'ure 1 is a transverse section on the line .1^ .r of Fig. 2, and Fig. 2 is a central longitudinal section of a reversible engine embodying my improvements. Fig'. B is a detail view of the valvegear looking from the right of Fig'. 2, and Fig. 4c shows a modilied vform of the vane and drawn to a larger scale than that of Fig. l. Figs. 5 and 6 are sections of the abutment, illustrating modified 'forms of packing.

Like letters of reference denote corresponding parts in the several figures.

fr is the annular working chamber, provided with end or coverA plates /1 having bearings therein for supporting the shaft c, upon which is keyed a rotary drum carrying' hinged vanes or pistons f f, which are capable of being pressed back to lie wholly within recesses or cavitiesflf' in the said drum. 'lhe inner edges or faces of said vanes slide or travel upon lixed cams y f/, secured to the coverplates l. /a/ is the fixed abutment, the face of which is continuous with that of the working chamber and is joined to the face of said chamber by easy curves. The drum (l makes contact with the central part of the abutment /1, as shown. 'l`he working' l'iuid is admitted and exhausted through ports j on opposite sides of the abutment, said ports being controlled by a slide-valve m, by means of which the direction of rotation of the engine can be changed.

Each vane or piston f is provided with a stop n, arranged in the position shown in Fig. l---that is to say, at that endof the vane remote from the pivot or axis of the vane and adjacent to the inner surface of the vane. This stop coacts with a relative or corresponding stop o, formed at the position shown on the wall of the recess f in the rotary pistondrum, and said stops conjointly prevent the .vanes pressing' unduly against the cylinderwall, and so minimize friction and wear. Said stops In. o also form Huid-tight joints when in contact and prevent leakage between the vanes and the drum d.' The stop a is preferably a separate detachable piece of metal, as shown in Fig. 4. It can thus be removed when worn and replaced by a new stop, thereby facilitating repair.' A cylindrical inner surface p is formed on each vane e. In some instances the exterior edge of the vane in contact with the wall of the working chamber will be sharp, and in such instances said edge will coincide with the axis of the inner cylindrical surface j) of the vane. This construction is exhibited in Fig. 1; but usually the exterior edge of the vane in contact with the wall of the working chamber will be rounded, and in such cases the axis of said rounded edge will coincide with the axis of the cylindrical inner surface p. This construction is exhibited in Fig. 4, qbeing the axis of the curved surfaces vp and r. The cylindrical surface p is in contact with the fixed cams g g, secured to the end or cover plate bb of the cylinder. The shape-of these cams, in combination with the coacting surfaces p r on the vanes, is an important feature of the present invention. The cams are so shaped as to have their surfaces parallel to the faces of the working chamber and abutment-that is to say, all lines drawn to the faces of the working chamber and abutment from the cams and normal to the cams are of equal length, and this length is equal to that of a line passing through the center q, Fig. 4, and terminated at its ends by the curves j) r, so that when the surface p is in contact with the cams g g the rounded edge 0' will be in contact with the face of the working chamber or of the abutment. The face u of the vane is cylindrical and is struck from the axis about which the vane oscillates. This face truly lits against the edge of the stop 0, and thereby allows of admitting the working fluid at an early period of the revolution before the vane has passed the sloping face of the abutment. The shape of the cams insures the accurate guiding of both of the vanes until each alternately comes in contact both with the stops already described and also with the face of the working chamber. The pressure 4 of the working fluid assisted by centrifugal eflcient working of the engine is thus attained, together with simplicity of construction. Nloreovcr, knocking of the vanes is prevented at the points where the curvature of the paths traversed by the vanes changes. The sides of the vanes are packed by packingstrips s, wedge-shaped in cross-section, lying in recesses t in the vanes and pressed against sloping walls of the said recesses by springs i. Longitudinal movement of the strips s in their recesses is prevented by pins w, passing through slots y/ in the strips. The sides of the drum are similarly packed by curved springstrips z, which are practically continuous with the packing-strips of the vanes.

The abutment-packing shown in Fig. 1 consists of a pair of pieces 2O 20, each of which is a segment of a tube extending the whole width of the working chamber. Said packing-pieces are supported between inner and outer bearings forming guideways 21 21 between them, and they are arranged with their convex surfaces opposed to each other, as shown in Fig. 1, and their edges bearing on the drum CZ. When at work, one of these packing-pieces will by reason of its position in relation to the rotating piston-drum tend to retreat within its guideway 21 due to the motion of the drum, while the other packingpiece will be drawn into closer contact with the piston-drum. The packing-pieces are arranged in pairs, as shown, so that one will act to secure fluid tightness at the abutment when the drum is rotating' in one direction and the other will so act when the drumis rotating in the opposite direction. Small apertures or ports 22 22 are provided to admit fluid under pressure to the back of the packing-pieces. In some instances the packing-pieces are furnished with tailpieces or lugs 23 23, projecting into slots 24 24, to limit the oscillatory movement of said packingpieces in their guideways 21 21.

The modified form of packing' shown in Fig. 5 consists of a single tubular segment 20, having a portion of its surface at 25 removed to form an extended bearing for making contact with the piston-drum. 26 is a division-plate separating the two free ends of the tubular segment. 22 22 are ports for admitting the working fluid to the small chambers between the division-plate 26 and the free ends of the tubular segment for the purpose of pressing the packing into contact with the piston-d rum. Fig. 6 diers from Fig. 5 only in that the tubular segment is divided centrally to form two segments, as shown.

The tappet-valve 2, Fig. 2, for controlling the admission of the working' agent so as to work expansively is mounted on a spindle 3, the length of which can be adjusted by means of nuts 4. The mechanism for operating said valve comprises levers 5 5, Fig. 3, pivoted at 6 6 to a fixed part of the engine and connected to the spindle 6 through a pin 7 and slots 8 TOO to give a positive driving' connection in one l face of the vane, the operativesurfaces ofsaid direction only. while allowing either lever to move without the other. At the ends of the levers 5 5 are arms 9 9, pivoting about pins i010, but having their movements limited by stops l1 l2 .il 1Q on the said arms and levers, respectively, so that the arms are free to move on one side only of their respective center lines. Said arms are brought to their normal position with the stops in contact by g'ravity or by springs. Rollers 13 13 on the arms 9 9 lie in the path of a single tappet or cam 14. llhile the engine is rotating' continuously in one direction only one of the arms 9 9 is effectively operated by the tappet 14 to cause the opening' of the valve, the other arm being' swung idly aside, as indicated by broken lines in Fig'. 3. The arms 9 9 are set at a suitable distance on each side of the center line and operate to admit the working fiuid at a corresponding part of the stroke when running' in either direction. The valve 2 is closed by pressure of the working fluid. The operative part of the cam or tappet is can be made removable from the body of the cam or otherwise arranged in any convenient manner to permit of changes being made in the stroke of the valve-spindle as required by the duty of the engine. Provision is thus made for working' expansively when running' in either direetion.

All the improvements herein claimed are applicable to internal-combustion engines as well as to ordinary fluid-pressure engines.

lYhat l claim is4 i. in a rotary engine, the combination of a working chamber, a fixed abutment having a yieldingly-mounted segmental-shaped packing, a piston-drum rotatably mounted in said chamber in contact with said abutment and having' a recess provided with a stop, a vane pivoted in said recess, a stop on the vane at a point remote from the axis thereof and coacting with the stop on the drum, and means for admitting' fiuid to the packing' for regulating' the yielding' ofthe same, as described, and for the purposes specified.

2. ln a rotary engine, the combination of a working' chamber, a fixed abutment having' oscillatory packings, a piston-drum rotatably mounted in said chamber in contact with said abutment and having' a recess extending' the whole width thereof, a stop extending' across said recess, a vane pivoted in said recess and extending' the whole width of the drum, a transverse stop extending' across that surface of the vane remote Vfrom the axis thereof, and means for admitting' fiuid to the packing' for regulating' the movement o'f the same, as described, and for the purposes specified.

25. In a rotary engine, the combination of a working chamber, a fixed abutment, a pistondrum. a vane pivoted to said drum, said vane having' a cylindrical inner surface, and stationary cams bearing on said cylindrical surcams being parallel to the faces of the working chamber and abutment, substantially as described.

4:. In a rotary engine, the combination of a working' chamber, a fixed abutment, a pistondrum, a vane pivoted to said drum, said vane having' a cylindrical inner sm'face, and a rounded exterior edge, and stationary cams bearing' on said cylindrical surface of the vane, the operative surfaces of said cams being' pai'- allel to the faces of the working chamber and abutment, substantially as described.

5. In a rotary engine, the combination of a working'chamber, a fixed abutment, a pistondrum, a vane pivoted to said drum, said vane having a cylindrical inner surface, and a rounded exterior edge, the said cylindrical surface and rounded exterior edge being' struck from the same center, and stationary cams bearing on said cylindrical surface of the vane, the operative surfaces of said cams being' parallel to the faces of the working' chamber and abutment, substantially as described.

6. In a rotary engine, the combination of a working chamber, a fixed abutment, a pist-ondrum, a vane pivoted to said drum, said vane having' a cylindrical inner surface, a rounded exterior edge, a curved cylindricalsurface remote from the axis, and a stop transversely arranged on said remote surface, and a stop on thc piston-drum coacting' with said stop on the vane, substantially as described.

T. In a rotary engine, the combination of a working chamber, a fixed abutment, a pistondrum rotatably mounted in said chamber in contact with said abutment, a vane'pivoted on said drum, and a packing-piece shaped like a segment of a tube mounted in said abutment with one edge in contact with the pistondrum, substantially as described.

S. In a rotary engine, the combination of a working' chamber, a fixed abutment, a pistondrum rotatably mounted in said chamber in contact with said abutment, a vane pivoted on said drum, and two packing-pieces shaped like segments of tubes mounted in said abutment with their edges in contact with the piston-drum, substantially as described.

9. ln a rotary engine, the combination of a working chamber, a fixed abutment, a pistondrum rotatably mounted in said chamber in contact with said abutment, a vane pivoted on said drum, and two packing-pieces shaped like segment-s of tubes mounted in said abutment with their edges in contact with the piston-drum, and ports for admitting' working fiuid to act on the free edges of the packingpieces, substantially as described.

l0. In a rotary engine, the combination of a working chamber, a fixed abutment, a pistondrum rotatably mounted in said chamber in contact with said abutment, a vane pivoted on said drum, a packing-piece shaped like a seg- IOC ment of a tube mounted in said abutment, a portion of said packing-piece being removed to form an extended bearing in contact with the piston-drum, substantially as described.

11. In a rotary engine, the combination of a working' chamber, a shaft traversing said chamber, a piston-drum mounted on said shaft, a vane pivoted on said drum, means for positively moving said vane outwardly, means for limiting the outward movement of the vane, a fixe/d abutment, a packing-piece shaped like a segment of a tube mounted in said abutment and pressed into contact with said pistondrum, ports for respectively admitting and exhausting working fluid on opposite sides of said abutment, a tappet-valve controlling the supply of Working fluid to the working chamber, and a cam on said rotatable shaft for operating said 4tappet-valve, substantially as described.

l2. In a rotaryT engine, the combinaton of a working chamber, a rotatable shaft carrying a piston-drum having a vane pivoted thereon, a tappet-valve controlling the supply of working fluid to the working chambers, a pivoted lever connected by a pin-and-slot connection to the spindle of said tappet-valve, a cam on said rotatable shaft and means whereby the said lever is oscillated by the cam only when the latter is rotating in a predetermined direction.

13. In a rotary engine, the combination of a working chamber, a rotatable shaft carrying a piston-drum having a vane pivoted thereon, a tappet-Valve controlling the supply of working fluid to the working chamber, a pivoted lever connected by a pin-and-slot connection t0 the spindle of said tappet-valve, a cam on said rotatable shaft, a swinging arm on said pivoted lever, a roller on said arm lying in the path of said cam, stops on said arm and lever respectively whereby said arm is free to move on one side only of its center line, substantially as described, and for the purpose specified.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

RICHARD LEE. Witnesses:

GEORGE HARRISON, HENRY W. LYNDEN 

